brookvaleplus.com

Tony Abbott has demonstrated beyond all reasonable doubt that he is a ‘very small picture’ man.  His recent statements on the subject of stem cell research have been firmly based in his own personal ideology and bear no relation to the real world.  While the war against Hezbollah raged in Lebanon, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of innocent families, Mr Abbott seemed unperturbed by the moral dimensions of that conflict.  His deep concern for the sanctity of human life was so firmly focussed on the eight-cell embryo that living, breathing, running for their lives adults and children didn’t even register on his moral radar.  On one particularly sad occasion, one of the victims of the Israeli bombs was a day-old baby.  Perhaps she was young enough to attract his attention?  Why is this man so obsessed with as yet non-existent embryos when he is part of a government which is aiding and abetting the slaughter of thousands of innocents in Iraq?  Is he at all interested in the fact that an estimated 100,000 cluster bombs are lying on the ground in Lebanon, waiting for children – it’s usually children who pick up these unfamiliar objects – who will be killed and crippled when they disturb them?

He remains equally unmoved by the possible benefits of the technology, even threatening legal action against people who may be tempted to go abroad to more advanced countries where the cure for crippling diseases and injuries could soon be available.  We have become accustomed to seeing children come to Australia for life-saving surgery on devasting injuries and deformities, and are proud of our ability to offer this help to people from less developed countries. If Mr Abbott has his way, the flow will be reversed. 

Spinalcure Australia, in a media statement on Wednesday said: “Mr Abbott’s position on somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) or “therapeutic cloning”  is untenable: the reality is that research is already happening overseas and this is like King Canute trying to turn back the tide. SCNT must be legalised in Australia if, as is claimed, the Government is to avoid the totally unacceptable position of criminalizing thousands of law abiding Australians.  The Government will be leaving itself open to accusations of hypocrisy and, worse still, endorsing a situation where only wealthy Australians can afford to travel overseas for such treatments.” 
His predecessor as Minister for Health, Senator Kay Patterson, is preparing a private member’s bill in support of SCNT. She told the ABC, “One of my concerns is that the work is being done in Sweden, in America, at Harvard and at UCLA, the University of California, San Francisco, in Britain. My question is, if… there is a therapeutic outcome, would we reject it in Australia?  I think the answer is no. I think if we had a treatment for Type 1 Diabetes and we said, oh we thought it was wrong to do somatic cell transfer so we’re not going to accept the treatment, I think there’d be an outcry from the community.”
And there would be.  From 80% of them to be precise. That’s the proportion of the Australian people who support SCNT according to a recent Roy Morgan poll.  Once again, we see our “representatives” determined to inflict their own ideologies on a population who largely disagree with them. 

Manly Council’s website is currently reminding local residents that is time to prepare the Manly State of the Environment Report (SoE) 2005/06.
The SoE will cover eight environmental sectors: land, aquatic systems, biodiversity, air, waste, noise, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal heritage, and social environment.  With global warming and water shortages so much in the minds of Manly residents, now would be a good time to look around and see what we can do to preserve our environment from further damage.

Community members are invited to become involved in the preparation of the Manly SoE by identifying environmental issues, activities or achievements particular to the Manly local government area. Written submissions are invited until 5pm, Friday 15 September 2006 and may be forwarded by facsimile 9976 1400, email records@manly.nsw.gov.au, or postal mail addressed to:
The General Manager
Manly Council
PO Box 82
MANLY  NSW 1655   

Details may be seen at the Manly Council website           

 Brookvale business owner Warren Webster has had to tap a global skills pool to turn his company into the leading supplier in Australia, New Zealand and parts of Asia of electronic signage used for major sporting events.  In a recent story in the Manly Daily, the local impact of nation-wide skills shortages was described in detail.

When Webster Signs introduced new technology to this country four years ago, Warren was unable to find suitably skilled local workers to operate the machines.

He resorted to importing skills after being forced to run three or four staff down for several years.  Webster said those overseas workers were now helping to train local workers. “We now have apprentices on board and 35 other staff, all being trained based on the systems we bring in from Europe.” He said they were also sent overseas to get further training.

Another Brookvale employer, Ken Sparks, owner of Ken Sparks Carpets, is sponsoring a British floor-layer and paying him almost double the minimum rate.

“We have a major problem in our industry of finding qualified people, particularly in hard flooring,” he said. “They’re just not coming through.”

He said putting on apprentices wasn’t the answer because the training being provided at college lagged behind the more sophisticated systems his company was using.